This ADA program supports ADA Community Workshops that are proposed by our members. To realize an ADA Community Workshop, financial support is allocated in partnership with the workshop coordinator for instructional fees, travel/accommodations, venue, and material costs up to a maximum of $700.00. This program is open to all disciplines seeking specialized education in technique, professional development, and healthy dancer education through workshops held in the province of Alberta. If you are unsure about whether or not your workshop proposal idea is eligible as an ADA Community Workshop, contact our office.
All genres of dance/movement are given consideration for workshops that meet a need/demand that is not being met without the proposed workshop, for specialized skill development in dance or affiliated practices. A reminder that proposals employing digital strategies such as online workshops using video conferencing and other tools are welcomed.
The workshop must not be regular ongoing classes or summer programs normal to the coordinator. There is no level restriction. Workshop proposals from coordinators seeking to offer specialized education in technique, professional development, and healthy dancer education to a community that is not otherwise receiving the education type on offer by the proposed educator generally score well during the allocation assessment. This often involves hiring an educator from outside Alberta to enrich a community with new ideas or practices or bringing educators from around Alberta to encourage the exchange of ideas that are new to the community the coordinator is targeting.
The price point for a given participant can vary depending upon the educator’s rate, anticipated enrollment, workshop contact hours, and other costs. We look for workshops that can balance value for money while continuing to remain accessible to their community and pay their educator(s) appropriately. Some coordinators choose to offer different price points to ensure that all who wish to participate can do so via a sliding scale.
This program (i.e. the workshops supported) is not for adults only, however, proposals for workshops targeting adult or advanced student participants are typically what we receive because, in most cases, the skills required at child or youth levels are often already available readily throughout the province. However, if access to education in a given skill area is not available to a community for reasons of geography, genre, underrepresentation, etc. a coordinator need only defend their need.
If you have a workshop in mind but are unsure of its eligibility, please contact us and we can help you further.
Application Seasonal Deadlines
for Spring Workshops (Apr-Jun): February 15
for Summer Workshops (Jul-Aug): Extended to June 15
for Fall Workshops (Sep-Dec): July 15
for Winter Workshop (Jan-Mar): November 15
Before you begin…
Read this page completely, the proposal guidelines are below and they will help to guide your process. To save yourself time and to aid in planning, we recommend you first download a reference copy of the proposal form (.pdf) (the actual form may be slightly different, and it will be taken as the official form) so you can see what is required and where there are character count constraints. We suggest that you then write out and save your proposal in a word processor before beginning the proposal form online, and then simply copy and paste your responses to each section. Doing this will ensure you have a local backup of your work and will help you focus and proofread your proposal. If at any time you feel there is an accessibility barrier preventing you from being able to propose a workshop, please let us know so we can work with you to receive your proposal.
Proposal Guidelines
If you do not submit all of the required information, your proposal will not be considered. Contact the ADA office if you have any questions about the proposal submission process.
Workshop proposals are peer-assessed (view the Assessment Policy) in four equally-weighted categories: correctness, impact, viability and artistic merit. The assessment is based solely on the workshop coordinator’s answers to the questions in their submitted proposal form, their projected budget, and all their uploaded support documents and artistic examples.
Proposals are assessed using a 5-point rating system: 5=excellent, 4=very good, 3=good, 2=fair, and 1=poor. Proposals with a final score, averaged across all assessors, of 3 or higher are considered eligible for ADA support. Both quantitative and qualitative feedback is used to inform ADA’s support allocations.
All genres of dance/movement are given consideration. Proposed workshops will be allocated support on a discretionary basis using the following guidelines.
To be eligible, the workshop coordinator (applicant) must at least:
- Be an ADA Member in good standing (you must log in before you begin your proposal);
- Individuals applying on their own and not on behalf of, or in partnership with, an organization must be an Individual Member with the ADA.
- If you are applying on behalf of an organization, that organization must be an Organization Member with the ADA.
- Non-members can register now.
- Propose a workshop that meets a need/demand in the community for specialized skill development in dance or affiliated practices, that is not being met without the proposed workshop;
- Ensure the workshops is open to the public for participation;
- Not be proposing regular ongoing classes or summer programs normal to the coordinator or a studio/company;
- Demonstrate how community support and need for the workshop will lead to its success (i.e. they explain why/how their workshop will not lose money and how it will achieve its desired outcomes);
- Show that the projected impact of the workshop is high;
- Demonstrate in their proposal that they are able to successfully deliver the workshop;
- Indicate financial need that necessitates the support of the Alberta Dance Alliance.